Periods at Hogwarts

Severus Snape helps our favourite Slytherin ;)

Hey! This story is kind of short since I had the day off today because of strikes, and conveniently I decided to start writing this at 10 pm on a school night. Not my best move but it is what it is. This fanfic is in first person from Severus' POV, because I thought I'd try the writing style out, and I'm quite proud of it. I might do one with Pansy too, but keep an eye out for the next chapter because it's gonna be an awkward one 🤭 

I strode through the hallways on a particularly stormy Tuesday night. The halls were silent except for the occasional thunder from outside the windows, relatively boring. Nobody was around, which I didn't really mind since I had just gotten back from a death eater meeting around half an hour ago and I wasn't in the mood to deal with wandering children at this hour. I contemplated just going back to my quarters to get a couple of extra hours sleep, but there was a feeling inside me, deep inside my gut, that told me someone would need me, so I stayed. It wasn't until about 3 hours later, when the clock struck midnight, that I started to hear a small whimper from down the back halls of the dungeons on my way back.

I followed the sound, making sure to keep my shoes as quiet as possible by casting a charm on them, and I found myself in the large box room which I know as my classroom. Why on the earth would anyone be in here in the middle of the night? I saw a figure in the distance, thinking that someone was trying to steal my potions and quickly switched on the light, brightening up the stacked potion vials on my shelf. The person, in fact, the boy, who was there was actually Draco Malfoy, and for once he wasn't trying to steal anything or ruin anyone elses' potion - he was crying. Not just any crying, sobbing. The type of sobbing where your knees involuntarily lift up to your chest and you fit your head in between the two, hoping to find some order in your mind for a moment. The boy didn't yet know I'd found him, but I began to make my way towards him anyway, tapping his knee to get his attention. He looked up, but his face seemed to show a mixture of emotional and physical exhaustion, preventing him from answering or even reacting. "Mr Malfoy, please tell me what aids you." I calmly asked, going to sit next to him on the freshly-cleaned tiles, "I can't have you crying alone like this."

"Professor, I'm bleeding." Draco managed to croak out through his oncoming tears, causing his eyes to redden and almost puff like his tears was being stored in his cheeks, "And it won't stop, I can't make it stop." For what seemed like the first time in the last couple of centuries at least, I let a small bit of worry fall onto my face, "Dragon, where are you bleeding and when did this begin to happen." I asked, not really expecting an answer from him. I know I should have higher expectations of him, but I find that he notices when I think highly of him - which stresses him out.

"Uhm, it's in my underwear and it started around 3 days ago." His tears were eventually wiped clean from his eyes, but they still looked glassy. I took a deep breath, god what am I doing, and began what's known as 'The Talk'.

"Dragon, listen to me." I found that at this point I had the urge to bang my head against a wall, "You're okay, this is normal. You've started your menstrual cycle, also known as a period now. This is going to happen every month until you go through menopause, and it just means you can bear children if and when you want to." I took out a sanitary towel from my pocket, which I've never been more grateful for until right now. "This is a sanitary towel or a pad. You stick it to your underwear, making sure it's the right side up, and it catches the blood. Go put this on, and don't forget to change it every 3-4 hours - you can come to me or Madame Pomfrey if you need any more."

Draco looked as if he was in shock, so he didn't answer my question. Instead, he took the towel from my hands and walked into the bathroom. I waited there until he was done, not wanting to leave him if he didn't want me to, and found that a couple of minutes later, the boy had emerged once again. He engulfed me in a hug, which I accepted hesitantly. This was not the time to worry about personal boundaries. He soon stepped back, and I straightened up my robe. "Thank you, professor." I stood there in a sort of 'what do I say' shock, before calling him back from where he was beginning to open the door to exit, "Your welcome, dragon. Don't hesitate to come to see me if you have any more questions or concerns." The little boy let out the most cheeky smile as he left the room, and I had to fight the grin that tried to appear on my face. Well, at least now I can say I've successfully assisted a student with their first period I suppose.